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Software · head to head

Confluence vs Obsidian

Confluence logo

Confluence

Software

Your remote-friendly team workspace

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Obsidian logo

Obsidian

Software

A powerful knowledge base on top of a local folder of plain text Markdown files

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Confluence listed on UK G-Cloud at £5 to £11 per licence per month for Atlassian Confluence, via reseller Rapid X; Obsidian sync is a paid add-on at $4 per month billed annually rather than part of the app
  • They diverge on capability: Confluence covers Page creation, Obsidian covers Bidirectional linking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Confluence and Obsidian actually diverge.

Attributes where Confluence and Obsidian differ
AttributeConfluenceObsidian
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
PlatformsWeb, Windows, Macos, Ios, AndroidWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android
Founded20022020

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Confluence

  • Page creation
  • Rich text editing
  • Macros
  • Comments
  • Version history
  • Content organization
  • Jira
  • Slack

Only in Obsidian

  • Bidirectional linking
  • Graph view visualization
  • Markdown support
  • Local file storage
  • Plugin ecosystem
  • Custom CSS themes
  • Search and tags
  • Zotero

Both cover

  • Templates
  • GitHub

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Confluence

  • Knowledge basenot Obsidian
  • Meeting notesnot Obsidian
  • Process documentationnot Obsidian
  • Project planningnot Obsidian

Obsidian

  • Local-first markdown note taking with no account requirednot Confluence
  • Linking notes into a personal knowledge graphnot Confluence
  • Syncing a vault across devices with end-to-end encryption on the paid add-onnot Confluence
  • Publishing a public site from a vaultnot Confluence
  • Extending the editor with community pluginsnot Confluence

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Confluence

  • Listed on UK G-Cloud at £5 to £11 per licence per month for Atlassian Confluence, via reseller Rapid X

Obsidian

  • Sync is a paid add-on at $4 per month billed annually rather than part of the app
  • Publishing to the web is a further $8 per month per site
  • Commercial use asks for a $50 per user per year licence, though the vendor states it is not required
  • Collaboration is limited compared with a hosted notes tool, since the vault is local files first

Pricing, plan by plan

Confluence

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited pages
    • Basic sharing
    • Search
  • Standard$5.5/month
    • Everything in Free
    • Advanced permissions
    • Macros

Obsidian

Free
  • Obsidian Sync$4/month
    • Sync notes across devices
  • Obsidian Publish$8/month
    • Turn notes into a website

Which should you pick?

Choose Confluence if

  • You need page creation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, Macos, Ios, Android.
  • You also want rich text editing.
Confluence review

Choose Obsidian if

  • You need bidirectional linking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android.
  • You also want graph view visualization.
Obsidian review

Questions people ask

Is Confluence or Obsidian better?
Neither clearly leads. Confluence starts at Free and Obsidian at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Confluence or Obsidian?
Confluence starts at Free and Obsidian at Free.
Does Confluence or Obsidian run on more platforms?
Confluence runs on Web, Windows, Macos, Ios, Android. Obsidian runs on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android.
Can I use Confluence for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Confluence best used for?
Confluence is most often used for knowledge base, meeting notes, process documentation, project planning. Of those, knowledge base and meeting notes are not what Obsidian is typically brought in for.
What can Confluence do that Obsidian cannot?
Confluence covers Page creation, Rich text editing, Macros, Comments. Obsidian covers Bidirectional linking, Graph view visualization, Markdown support, Local file storage. Both handle Templates, GitHub.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Obsidian: Is Obsidian free?

Yes. The core Obsidian application is 100% free for personal and commercial use with no limitations. You can use unlimited vaults and every core feature without payment.

Source
Obsidian: What file format does Obsidian use?

Obsidian stores every note as a plain Markdown file. Because it uses standard Markdown instead of a proprietary format, your notes remain portable and can be edited with many other Markdown editors.

Source
Obsidian: Can I collaborate with others in Obsidian?

The core application does not include built-in team collaboration features. However, Obsidian offers optional add-ons and can be used with version control systems or cloud storage for collaboration.

Source
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